Cassilda's Song: Tales Inspired by Robert W. Chambers King in Yellow Mythos

An great anthology of stories inspired by and / or set in Robert W. Chambers 'King in Yellow' Mythos. A notable feature of this collection is the theme that each writer is a women and the focus generally leans towards Cassilda, one of the other characters in the Carcosa / KIY Mythos. Every story in this collection is good, even the least among them is still a solid tale, and a few of them rise above to the level of excellence. A definitive recommendation to fans of The King in Yellow, or anyone who enjoys weird fiction.

I admit that I'm only halfway through. But I don't see where the rest of the book can possibly change my opinion. Cassilda's is a siren song, the sound of ambulances beckoning to their chasers, of the drug calling to the addict. Cassilda lives in/on Carcosa, you see. Mr. Pulver apparently has a work permit and season tickets to the play. The Yellow play.That way lies madness. And it's glorious.The carefully-selected stories in this volume will seduce and bewitch you long after you've closed the covers.

Not good... barley readable for true fans of the the Chambers mythos. I seriously doubt the credibility of any of the positive reviews.Most of the stories were clearly written by people who never read or understood the earlier writings of the masters of the genre. (Clark Ashton Smith, Thomas Ligotti, Robert Bloch, Robert M. Price, and Ramsey Campbell to name few) In their eagerness to create a new vision of what Hastur, Carcosa or the Yellow Sign are, they make stories that are disjointed, boring or just plain nonsensical.I agree with an earlier review, these stories seem to be rejects from other collections or publications.I am sad (and a bit relived to say) that this book is not worth the paper they used to print it. I have never recommended burning a book... but if you need kindling... this should be the first to go.

Joe Pulver has selected some of the best in contemporary King in Yellow fiction all by women authors...truly marvelous stuff.

An anthology of 'King in Yellow' stories, written by female authors, and usually featuring female characters. The stories range from almost incoherent to excellent.

The quality of stories in this collection is uneven, none were exceptional, and only some of them were passable. I got the impression that several of them had been rejected elsewhere, and had been clumsily reworked to fit vaguely into Chamber's world, mainly by changing character names to those of his characters. The one that springs to mind immediately is a tale involving a stray dog in Israel, which has no other connection to Chambers than names.

An amazing anthology that does what King in Yellow stories do best: create a dreamlike mood and the sensation that reality is ephemeral and could fade at any moment. Individually, nearly all of these stories would be standouts in another anthology. But together the stories fit perfectly, contributing and building towards a greater whole. It begins perfectly with a story by Damien Angelica Walters about an artist and her creation. This story accomplishes several things at once: using a female artist as opposed to the male artist in Chambers’s “The Yellow Sign” sets up that the anthology is written entirely by women, the story also beautifully establishes mood and tone, and since it is a story about the act of creation it builds the framework for the rest of the anthology, all while telling it’s own separate story.The affect of these stories continues to build. Mercedes Yardely’s “Just Beyond Her Dreaming,” is from start to finish one of the best stories I’ve read, and it’s addition to this anthology with the line at the end “[The King in Yellow] changes everything. Absolutely everything” is perfectly placed. By the time the anthology hit its homestretch with stories by E. Catherine Tobler & Damien Angelica Walters, Molly Tanzer, and S.P. Miskowski, my ears were ringing and I can’t think of three better stories to read back to back, an incredible ending to a stellar combination of stories.I have read many anthologies either of or containing King in Yellow stories, but have never read an anthology where the overall effect is so wonderfully unsettling. Each morning after reading one story, the dreamlike effect has lingered and now having finished the last last story and considering the book in its entirety, I half expect to see the Yellow Sign

A mind-bendingly creepy anthology of stories from 18 female authors here, with lots of interesting spins on Robert W Chambers' King in Yellow mythos.The strongest stories are packed together at the start of the collection, with Black Stars on Canvas, a Reproduction in Acrylic by Damien Angelica Walters, Yella by Nicole Cushing and Exposure by Helen Marshall increasing the nightmarish atmosphere and terror so effectively, I actually had to put the book down for a break midway through.With such awesome openers, the more typical stories in the bunch tend to lose their impact, though there are some notably imaginative and creey tales to be found amongst the less effective ones.Old Tsah-Hov by Anya Martin is the most unusual and brilliant story here, a masterclass in revealing just enough, leading you through the many shocks and surprises to keep you both shocked and surprised. Dancing the Mask by Ann K Schwader also draws you in with some wonderfully vivid imagery.You definitely get value for money in terms of variety here, and some of the stories manage to surpass Chamber's original tales in terms of scares. If you like the originals or any kind of cosmic horror, this is well worth a look.